Long Time No See
by Light of the Dawn
Summary: Ash and Dawn haven't seen or spoken to each other in years! Now they are about to meet again! Caution: LOTS of Shipping, though the focus is Pearlshipping. On Hiatus. My writing style is quite poor in this fic, since it was written awhile ago.
1. The Invitation

**I don't own Pokemon, but I still think that it rocks!**

**Now onto the story. I hope that you like it!**

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"Pachirisu, Sweet kiss, and Piplup, use Peck!" Dawn called out.

Dawn, a sixteen year old Former Pokemon Coordinator, was doing some practice. She never got tired of coming up with better moves for her Pokemon. She was starting to go back to the more basic moves, to try and improve on simplicity.

Her blue hair reached down to her waist, and her pretty bright blue eyes sparkled. Her white hat with the light pink Pokeball on the front was in her backpack, which was hooked on her Mamoswine's tusk. Dawn herself wore white knee length leggings, and a casual short pink and white sleeveless v-neck dress. She also wore pink boots.

Pink hearts from Pachirisu's sweet kiss floated upwards into the sky, and were quickly turned into pretty pink sparkles by Piplup's peck. Pachirisu landed on her tail, and Piplup landed in front of her, both bowed.

"That was very pretty Dawn! I wish I could make something half as pretty as that!" A female voice from the sidelines called. It belonged to Ivana, a young Pokemon coordinator, and her self-appointed biggest fan.

Ivana was 13 years old, and had waist length light brown hair that she usually wore in a long, thick braid. She usually tried to mimic Dawn's outfits, and today she sported a pink t-shirt and tight white shorts, with pink sneakers. She had a pink bandanna with a white Pokeball pattern on it that she was rarely seen without.

"Oh stop. You're Pokemon's moves are plenty pretty!" Dawn replied, with a smile, her blue eyes meeting Ivana's brown ones.

"You mean it?" Ivana asked, looking shocked.

"Yes, same as I've meant it every other time you've said that." Dawn laughed.

"Oh thank you!" Ivana cried, jumping up determinedly, ready to do some special training of her own.

"Told you so." Hunter replied.

Hunter was a Pokemon trainer who wanted to battle the elite four one day, and was the same age as Ivana. He had short black hair, and big brown eyes. Today, he was wearing a red t-shirt and black shorts. His sneakers were black. He and Ivana were good friends, and had been for a long time.

"Why don't you and I do some training together?" Ivana asked, looking at Hunter expectantly.

"Sure." He nodded with a smile.

"Let's go, Shuppet!" Ivana called, throwing a Pokeball into the air. With a flash of red, her energetic little Shuppet soon hovered before them.

"Yanma, come on out!" Hunter copied Ivana's action, and soon his laid back Yanma flew around slowly around them.

Hunter and Ivana had been traveling with Dawn for almost a year now. The two were almost inseparable. Ivana's habit of always trying to be a miniature Dawn always made her laugh, and the way that Hunter was constantly supportive of his best friend always made her smile.

Dawn was lost in thought as she slowly started to walk away. She had learned that when Hunter and Ivana practiced together, it was best if Dawn left. Hunter was always trying to impress Ivana, and Ivana was always trying not to mess up in front of Dawn, and she usually got distracted and made a big mistake anyway.

"Deliiiii!" A high pitched cry from above jolted Dawn from her thoughts. She looked up to see a red and white bird-like figure in the air above her, coming closer. A Delibird.

As Dawn slowed down, she looked around her. She was on a bridge that had thick cement walls. She stopped at the middle of the bridge, and put her hands flat on the top of the half walls. She looked at the horizon. The river that flowed under the bridge was pretty and clear bright blue.

"Deli!" The Delibird repeated as it's feet landed on the cement wall. Then, it extended it's wing, holding a crisp white envelope.

"For me? Thank you!" Dawn smiled, taking the letter from the Pokemon. Then, the bird leaped into the air, and flew off in the direction it had come from.

Dawn looked at the white envelope for a long moment, or rather she stared at it. She ran her fingers over the front of it, where her name had been written in clear, black ink, then she flipped it over and ran her fingers over the back, eventually tearing it open.

She pulled out the letter, which was a very short note, and as her bright blue eyes quickly took in everything. She turned the letter over quickly, and then, finally, she turned it back over again, ready to read it.

*

I was surprised by who the letter was from. I hadn't seen or even heard from Brock since he left Ash and I about a year after I beat my mother's rival, Lila, in the Celestic town contest, and yet, for some reason I had now received a letter written by him.

_Hey Dawn,_

_Brock here. I know it's been awhile since I last saw, or talked to you, but that doesn't mean I've forgotten you, if thats what you've been thinking. I should have kept in touch, but I never found the time, even though I easily could have._

_Anyway, I am excited to tell you that I am finally getting married! Yes, it's true, I found a girl who wanted to go out with me! You met her of course. Do you remember Autumn, one of the Milk Maids in Solaceon Town? Well, she is my Fiance now._

_Anyway, both of us would love it if you came to the wedding. All the details are on the actual wedding invitation. I hope to see you there._

_Sincerely,_

_Brock_

So Brock was getting married! Brock! I laughed when I remembered how he used to fall head over heels with every woman that he met who was his age or older. After helping Autumn with her Miltank, Ilta, I could see that she had a crush on him, but he liked her two older sisters, Spring and Summer.

That meant that I would see Ash! If I was invited, then Ash would be too, since he had been friends with Brock for much longer than I had. I hadn't seen Ash since we had parted ways almost four years ago.

Brock got along with everyone, so the wedding would no doubt be huge. How many people would be there? Would Zoey, Kenny, Leona, Barry, and Paul be there too? I hadn't seen them recently, but I had seen them since Ash and I had stopped traveling together.

I put the note back into the envelope, and hurried back to my lodgings. I was staying in a motel. I had my own room, while Ivana was sharing a room with Hunter.

I quickly began to pack my things. Everything that I would need at Brock's wedding. I quickly checked the official invite, to find out when the wedding actually was. It was in 3 weeks time.

After I finished packing my things, I sent my RSVP back to Brock and Autumn. I quickly got my things ready, and called the train station to reserve my ticket. Now, it was time to do some more contest training.

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**This is my first Fanfic here, but please, don't be nice. Please Critisize all that you want! I need criticism if I'm to become a better writer/author!**

**My writing will improve throughout the chapters. This was written awhile ago and my writing style has since improved, but still please criticize!**

**Please Read and Review!**


	2. Catching Up

**Like it says in my first chapter, I don't own Pokemon. If I did, I very much doubt that I'd be writing fanfics about it.**

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I stepped off the train, my suitcase in my hand, and my best friend Piplup by my side. Hunter and Ivana had decided not to come with me, since there was a contest in a nearby town that both intended to enter. Hunter entered contests so that he could work on his training technique.

I carried my suitcase outside of the train station, and Brock was waiting there in his truck. He waved to me, so Piplup and I hurried over. Another train was pulling into the station, and after a moment, Zoey and her Glameow joined us. After both Zoey and I threw our luggage in the back of the truck, we got into the cab.

Zoey sat in the middle, while I sat by the window with Piplup on my lap. Zoey's Glameow leaped up onto the dashboard in front of me, and lied down in the sun. Brock got into the driver's seat, and started up the engine after the three of us had buckled our seat belts.

"Hey guys." Zoey greeted us with a smile. "Thanks for inviting me Brock."

"No problem." Brock smiled back as he pulled out of the parking lot and onto the main road.

"How have you been?" I asked nobody in general.

"Good. Autmun and I have been working on plans. She's going to have her own cafe, and I'm going to breed Pokemon and give advice to all the young trainers I can, in the same facility." Brock replied after a moment when Zoey did not.

"I've been contemplating whether I should start a summer training camp for Coordinators. I've been discussing it with Mr. Contesta and he seems to like the idea." Zoey nodded. "How about you Dawn?"

"Well I went down to Kanto for a bit and acted as a Guest judge in some contests there. Spots as a Guest Judge were easy to come by since they already know my mom from the Sinnoh Grand Festival. After the Grand Festival in Kanto, I came back and worked with Lila at her Pokestylist shop in Celestic town, but after awhile, I got bored with it and started to travel again. That's when I met up with Ivana and Hunter, and I had been traveling with them since. They're sweethearts." I replied with a smile.

"I saw your Kanto debut on TV. The other judges seemed to love you." Brock complimented me, not commenting on why I had given up being a coordinator.

"I didn't see your debut as a Kanto Guest Judge, but I caught a few of the other contests that you were judging." Zoey added with a smile.

"So, Ivana and Hunter, tell us about them." Brock prompted me.

"Well they're both thirteen years old. Ivana is a coordinator like I used to be, and she's always trying to dress like me. It sometimes gets annoying, but I'd never tell her that. I'm sure that she'll find her own style eventually. And Hunter is a trainer like Ash. He enters a few contests every now and then, but his goal is to eventually challenge the champion. They're best friends and pretty much inseparable." I explained.

"Are they hotheads like you and Ash used to be?" Brock asked teasingly, making Zoey smile and laugh at the thought.

The comment was only said in jest, I knew that, but it still hurt like a bee stinging my heart. Nobody had known what had happened between Ash and I for us to go our separate ways. It upset me to think about it, so I avoided thinking about Ash.

"Earth to Dawn!" Zoey's familiar voice pierced my thoughts like a pin in a balloon. My bright blue eyes wide, I realized that I hadn't answered Brock's question.

"I said 'Are they hotheads like you and Ash used to be?' You guys used to fight all the time when you first started travelling with us." Brock's eyes were completely focused on the road now.

"No. Hunter is really mellow, but he's focused, and Ivana is quite.... energetic, and she gets distracted all the time. Their Pokemon are exactly like them. It's quite funny to watch them at times. It's like watching them with the Pokemon versions of themselves." I continued, smiling because they were interested in what I had been doing. "Now Zoey, tell us more about this summer training camp for Coordinators."

"Oh, it's nothing really. Mr. Contesta loved the idea when I suggested it to him. He told me that the younger generation would benefit greatly from having an older mentor to help them with their contest skills. That way, with every generation, the contests get more and more exciting." Zoey smiled. Most likely she was pleased that we were interested in what she had been doing, just like I had.

"I agree. So many young Coordinators just need the confidence of an older Coordinator telling them that their combinations are good enough. Or even if you could work with younger children who want to become Coordinators. It would help them decide thats what they want to do, and give them experience. I think it's a great idea. If you decide to do this, then give me a call. Autumn has a little cousin who would love that, and I know a bunch of other kids who would too." Brock replied.

"Yeah, we were thinking of doing a week long program for those who already have started their journeys, and then a longer program for the younger kids. We were going to provide the Pokemon, and they have to choose a random Pokeball, and they will have to work with what they choose, without seeing the Pokemon first, to show them to make the best of what they've got. We would hold miniature contests, and give out ribbons to the winners." Zoey continued.

"I've got some baby Pokemon that would benefit greatly from working with the younger children. Blissey is great with the baby Pokemon, and children too. I remember when she was just a little Hapiny. You were there when she hatched, and Ash too. Remember that Dawn?" Brock asked.

"Yes. And you had Sudowoodo, and Croagunk. How is Croagunk nowadays? Is he keeping everyone in check?" I laughed at the memories, which were washing over me like a wave. I missed the days when it was just me, Ash, and Brock. Those were such fun times.

"Croagunk is fine. Our neighbor's Croagunk has a crush on him." Brock laughed, clearly thinking about the days when he used to ask every woman to go out with him, and Croagunk used to keep him under control with a quick poison jab.

"And how's Autumn?" Zoey prompted.

"She's great. Ilta's three daughters follow her around like a lost Poochyena. She's having fun drawing the plans for our Cafe, but she's under a lot of stress from the wedding. She tries to hide it from me because she doesn't want me to worry, but I know that she's stressed. I've been told that the most stressful event in a person's life is their wedding day." Brock finished.

As we sat silent for a long moment, I looked out the window and saw a blond girl on a Ponyta racing through the field that ran parallel with the road. It took me a second to realize that she was racing the truck! Her Ponyta looked like it was having a blast, and the running was obviously doing the Ponyta good, as it's mane and tail were a massive banner of flames, and it's tail stretched more than the entire length of it's body behind the pair. I wondered why there was a vacant field in the middle of the city.

"Here we are." Brock spoke quietly as he slowed the truck down and pulled into a short driveway on the other side of the road as the vacant field. After parking the car in the garage, Zoey and I lugged out our luggage from the back of the truck. Glameow and Piplup were standing together, looking around and smiling like old friends.

"This is a pretty place you've got, Brock." I said, and Zoey nodded in agreement.

"Thanks. Your rooms are right this way." Brock answered, starting towards the house.

"Don't be silly Brock! I don't want to put you out. I'll stay in a hotel. Any that you would recommend?" Zoey and I said in unison.

"You wouldn't be putting us out. We have enough room for you guys." Brock replied, turning around.

"No Brock, as much as I appreciate your very thoughtful offer, you have enough going on, so you don't need to add a house guest into the mix." I said firmly.

"I agree." Zoey added, her voice equally as firm.

"Alright then. The hotel next door is a good place. They always have rooms to spare, and their breakfast is delicious. Autumn and I stayed there for a couple of nights, and that's when we found out that this house was for sale. We love the town. Everyone is very friendly, and a lot of people are going eco-friendly if they haven't already made the switch." Brock explained.

"Great. I'm going to go and check in. Are you coming Dawn?" Zoey asked me. I nodded. Of course I was coming.

"Are we sharing a room?" I asked her once we were out of earshot of Brock.

"Well, it depends. If they have enough rooms and the prices are reasonable, then we should have our own. We can always share later on if need be." Zoey answered logically.

Of course, Zoey was always the logical thinker. If the hotel ran out of rooms, then we could double up with other wedding guests. But then again, we were also limiting the amount of rooms available for wedding guests.

We pushed through the spinning glass door, and entered the lobby. It was brightly painted in a lemony-cream color, and was very bright. There were many windows which gave scenic views to any that entered the lobby. There were three platinum colored elevators on the far side of the east wall, and a check in/out desk which was also platinum colored, with glass, at the center of the back wall.

Zoey and I walked up to the check in/out desk, and waited. There was a small line. There were three other people in line, and the line moved quickly. It appeared as though the other people were wedding guests too.

"Dawn?" I heard a familiar female voice behind me. Zoey and I both turned around.

"May!" I replied. "It's good to see you!"

"Back at ya!" May smiled.

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	3. Old Friends

**I still don't own Pokemon, but if I did that would be really cool! But not as cool as it would be if we actually lived in the world of Pokemon! **

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It took us twenty minutes to check into the Hotel, and to find our rooms, which were all across the hall from each other. After unpacking my suitcase, and hanging up all my clothes in the wardrobe, I joined May and Zoey in the hall, and we went out for lunch.

After a fun lunch, we took a walk around the town to try and figure out our way around it. Then, we returned to Brock and Autumn's house. In the few hours that we had been exploring the town, many more wedding guests had arrived. Brock's front yard was swarmed by trainers.

I recognized Kenny, Paul, Angie, Conway, and Ash immediately. Ash was standing with a girl with red hair, but he walked away after a short moment. May's face took on an immediate look of recognition at the sight of the guests, and I saw that she too was looking at the red headed girl.

I also noticed Ray, my Ex-boyfriend. Ray and I had met in Kanto, after I had been a guest judge at the Petalburg Contest. We started to travel together, and after my second appearance as a guest judge, we had started to date. Then he started to get really clingy, and overprotective of me. He was always jealous if I talked to another guy, and would always give me twenty questions afterwards. After I hugged another of my close male friends that I hadn't seen in a long time after he watched me act as a guest judge in another Contest, he accused me of cheating on him. Then we had an argument, resulting in our breakup. Now he was standing there with a chesty blond girl on his arm. He caught my eye, and half glared, half smirked at me. I looked away, wondering how Brock knew him, and how he had gotten an invitation.

I thought briefly about Kenny too. We had gone on a date awhile back, but I had found it way too awkward and we had decided not to go out anymore. Now, I rarely saw him. Talking to him was an even rarer occurrence.

May started over to Ash and the redhead, and Zoey and I followed much like lost puppies. Kenny and Angie approached us together. It seemed as though the two had met already.

"Dawn!" Angie said, wrapping me in a hug.

"May!" The redheaded girl said, hugging her.

"How are you, Angie? Hi Kenny." I replied, hugging her back, then hugging Kenny. Hugging Kenny felt awkward, but I hugged him anyway.

"Hey Misty!" May answered as she hugged the redheaded girl back.

"Everyone, this is Misty." May said, gesturing to the redheaded girl.

"Nice to meet you Misty." among other variations of it, was what our reply was.

"Misty, this is Zoey, Kenny, Angie, and Dawn." May replied, gesturing to each of us in turn as she said our names.

Misty did not reply, but she smiled and nodded. I wasn't sure how May knew Kenny or Angie, but it was very obvious that she did.

I looked around, and I saw Paul looking my way. He had a strange smirk on, but when he noticed me look his way, his face went blank, and he looked away. Also, I saw Conway, who appeared to be looking my way too, but I couldn't tell because his glasses were white with the glare of the sun.

"I'm going to go and see some other people." Kenny interrupted my thoughts when he spoke, as he was standing the closest to me.

"Feeling awkward because you're the only guy in this group?" Zoey teased, and Kenny blushed a little, replying with, "No!" before he walked away quickly.

*

I was on my own now. Kenny had found Leona, and was with her and Zoey, chatting. May and Misty had gone off to find Autumn to ask if there was anything that they could help her with. Angie had gone to see if Brock wanted a hand with any of the baby Pokemon.

I was leaning on the white fence that surrounded Brock and Autumn's property, staring at the horizon as the sun began to sink behind the trees. There was no building in sight the way I was looking, and it reminded me of my days when I used to travel with Ash and Brock.

"Hello Dawn." Came a familiar male voice behind me, jolting me out of my thoughts.

"Wha-? Oh, hello Conway." I gasped, startled at first, but I quickly calmed down.

"How are you?" Conway asked me, adjusting his glasses, which became white with the glare of the sun once again.

"I'm well. And you?" I answered. To be completely honest, I was a little afraid of Conway. I found him rather creepy more than once when I traveled with Ash, and it didn't appear that he had changed any.

"I'm good. I saw all of your contests, before you gave up being a Coordinator. I knew that you were the one I should be watching out for. Studying. You would easily be a tough rival of mine." Conway replied.

I was speechless. Conway was being creepy like he had been before, except now I had nowhere to hide. I didn't have Ash to hide behind. I felt weird and awkward because I couldn't think of something to say to reply, and Conway was just staring at me.

"Oh, was that Brock? I think I'm needed! Um... Bye!" I finally regained control of my tongue, and then I was gone. Conway was creepy, that was for sure. I needed to get away from him. I raced across the yard, and around the side of the house, into the shadows, to hide from Conway.

Then, I saw a familiar figure in the pink-orange glow of the setting sun, out of the shadows behind the house, and I almost slipped on the grass and ran into him as I tried to stop suddenly.

"Ash Ketchum, come here and give me a hug." was what I wanted to say to him, but did I? No. Of course not, because I don't know if he's still mad at me. And here's me, I can't even remember the reason that we fought in the first place. I hope that he has forgiven me for whatever it is that I did wrong.

So instead, I say "Hi Ash." I try not to sound too happy to see him, in case he's still mad. After our fight, I should have turned around and gone after him. How selfish and arrogant I was back then.

"Hey Dawn," Came Ash's reply. He doesn't seem happy to see me. Oh great. Now my rather good mood has been spoiled completely.

Of course, Pikachu is on Ash's shoulder, like I always remember. Best of friends, until the end. I'd let all my Pokemon out of their Pokeballs so that they could socialize and stretch their legs.

Suddenly, I heard "Bunbun!" and Buneary landed beside me. It was obvious that she was still very much in love with Pikachu. I felt bad that I had left Ash and Pikachu. It broke Buneary's heart when I did that, and I spent a lot of time regretting it.

"Pika!" Pikachu replied, leaping off of Ash's shoulder to greet his old friend. Buneary looked like she was going to explode with happiness. I tried not to blush, even though I didn't know why I was blushing in the first place.

"So how have you been?" I asked Ash quietly.

"I've been good. And you?"

"Same."

And that was our entire conversation. I couldn't think of anything to say to him, and he didn't seem like he wanted to talk to me. I tried not to look upset, but I felt like crying. Ash was mad at me, and that was that. After what seemed like forever of awkward silence, I slowly walked away.

*

I sighed as I looked at myself in the mirror on the wall. I was in my hotel room, getting ready for the wedding. Two weeks had flown by, and this morning I had woken up to the shock of realizing that the wedding was today. I couldn't even begin to imagine how stressed Brock and Autumn were.

Buneary was dressed up in a frilly light pink dress with matching pink bows wrapped around the bases of her ears. Piplup was wearing a dark blue bow tie. Ambipom was wearing a bright red dress with a pretty matching red bow on the top of her head. Pachirisu was wearing a yellow dress with a small red bow around the middle, and Mamoswine was wearing a black bow tie around his neck.

My hair was curled at front on the sides, and the rest was pulled into a ponytail at the back. It had taken a bottle and a half of hairspray to get it just right, and even now, I still wasn't satisfied with it. After washing the hairspray out for the third time, I finally managed to get my hair almost perfect. All of my hair was curled, and most of it was pulled up into a ponytail, leaving a few strands out of the ponytail on purpose.

I stood up, and smoothed a crease in my dress, which was a floor length light sage green halter neck ball gown with a princess style skirt. It was pretty, and I loved it. It was plain, and it fitted perfectly, and the girl at the dress shop had said how much it complimented my figure. On my feet I was wearing matching light sage green gladiator style shoes with shiny silver buckles.

I smiled at my Pokemon, and they cheered. They were as excited about the wedding as could be. I was excited too, but I was also dreading the wedding at the same time. I didn't have a date, and I knew that May was going with her old rival, Drew, and Misty was going with Tracey. I had found out yesterday that Zoey was going with Kenny, and Leona was going with Conway. Angie was going with Gary. It seemed that I was the only girl who didn't have a date to the wedding.

*

The wedding was being held in a magnificent older hotel. The hotel itself was massive, and was a little bit out of town. It had grand ballrooms, huge dining areas, beautiful old décor, and was more like a castle than a hotel. I looked up, at the skylight, and saw the dimming evening light. There was an orange-pink glow from the setting sun.

What a lovely time to have the wedding, I thought to myself as I looked around, smiling. I caught Brock's eye, and I gave him the thumbs up sign to encourage him.

Brock was standing at the alter with the priest, and shuffling nervously. We all looked around and the doors opened, revealing Autumn in a long, white strapless princess gown with a silver tiara and a long white veil. We all stood up, and the bridal march started to play, and Autumn took her first steps down the aisle.

The rest of the wedding was like a blur. Autumn walked up, and after the priest said some words, Brock and Autumn said their vows. Then, for their first kiss as a married couple, I was temporarily blinded by the flash of cameras. When I could see again, all I saw was the two of them running out the door together, having run down the aisle while I was blinded.

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**Stay Tuned for the next Chapter!**

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	4. The Ceremony

**I don't own Pokemon. **

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The whole ceremony had now moved to the grand ballroom. It was by far the biggest room I'd ever seen, and it was decorated extravagantly with old fashioned jewels, and fancy paintings. There were three great chandeliers, the one in the middle was by far the largest and most beautiful. There was a band set up in the corner, ready for any request that was given.

After Brock and Autumn had cut the wedding cake, and shared the first dance, the other people with dates started to dance too. Soon, almost everyone had danced with someone.

"Dawn, would you like to dance?" Came a familiar male voice. I had been lost in thought, when he had spoken to me. I knew that the voice belonged to Paul.

"Sure." I answered, standing up.

I put my hands on the boy's shoulders, and he put his hands on my hips. The typical slow dance. The typical, boring old slow dance. I looked at Paul's face. His long purple hair was nice, I suppose.

I looked at his eyes, and found that he was focusing on me. I looked into his eyes, but I felt as though he was looking through me. After another song, I realized that Paul wasn't looking at me. He was looking past me. Over my shoulder, but I didn't know who at.

"So, how has your Pokemon's training been going?" I asked him, trying to get his attention on me. Suddenly, I realized that I desired his attention, but I felt like he was looking right through me.

"Good." Paul answered. He did not expand on that. He hadn't even looked at me. I felt like bursting into tears right there. Ash was mad at me, Paul could care less if I walked away right now, and Ray obviously hated me. Kenny was dating Zoey, and Conway hadn't spoken to me since I had last spoken to Ash. Every time Conway saw me, he would turn his back to me, or look away. Clearly, he was angry with me, but I could deal with that. I find Conway extremely creepy anyway.

"So, how is Usaring?" I whispered, still trying to break the silence.

"Good." Paul answered coldly. It was obvious to me now that talking to me was the last thing on his priority list.

So I studied his face instead. He wasn't looking at me, so he wouldn't notice. His eyes were narrowed, and paying attention to something or someone behind me. We had not turned, so I had no clue as to who Paul was staring at.

Then, he smirked. Whoever he was paying attention to that was behind me was obviously giving him the reaction that he wanted from them. I could feel the person's eyes boring into my back, and I felt even more subconscious.

I sighed quietly. Paul didn't notice. He only continued to look right through me. It was as if I wasn't even there. I felt my shoulders start to slump. Of course, they would. I was upset, and Paul didn't even notice, not that he would care if he did. I began to stare vacantly across the room, over Paul's shoulder.

"Stand up straight." Paul said.

My heart skipped a beat at the prospect that Paul may actually be paying attention to me now. I straightened my posture instantly, but when I looked back to his face, he was still smirking and looking at someone behind me.

I felt neglected and alone. None of my female friends would know how I was feeling. I was trying my best to hide my feelings, but I knew how pointless it was. Paul wouldn't notice if I was crying on his shoulder.

My wrists were resting my Paul's shoulders, and I clenched my fists. Would he notice? I doubted it. He didn't say anything if he noticed. I felt close to tears. Wherever I looked in the room, I could only see happy couples. Then I look back to Paul's now emotionless face and I feel worse.

Then, Paul pulled me closer, by my hips of course. I was not expecting him to do that, so I stumbled forward, and bumped into him. He held me there. I was getting uncomfortable.

The room had gotten hot and stuffy, and now that I was so close to Paul, I was starting to really notice it. I tried to pull away a little, but Paul held me firmly where I was, and didn't appear to notice.

There was little space between us now, and Paul was still staring expressionlessly at someone behind me. And he wasn't offering me the chance to leave. I sighed again, heavily this time, but once again Paul didn't appear to notice.

I was getting depressed because I wasn't interesting enough that Paul wouldn't talk to me for one second, or even look at me for one second. Of course, I was starting to think that Paul was only dancing with me to make someone jealous. Using me.

Then, he pulled me even closer, but I jerked my elbows back to my sides, and put my hands on Paul's chest to try and keep the distance between us. I began to push him away from me.

After a moment, I managed to get him away from me for a millisecond. In that one millisecond, I was away from him, and gone, out the door and into the hallway. I needed air. Desperately.

The hallway was cream colored with molding going halfway up the height of the wall. Down the middle of the hall was a dark green carpet. It ran the entire length of the hallway, and stopped about six inches from each wall.

I turned right and ran down the hallway, trying to hold up my large, poofy green skirt as I ran. Luckily, my shoes, which were hidden by my dress were better for running in than high heels. I was so glad I'd chosen them over my high heels.

At the end of the hallway, there were three was to go. Left, right or straight. I didn't stop. I kept going straight. Then I came to the end of the hallway. I could either go left or right.

I stepped to the right side of the hallway. I quickly hurried the full length of the hallway, which was about 15 feet long, and pushed the beautiful glass doors open. I didn't bother to close them behind me as I stepped onto the balcony into the night air.

I walked almost to the edge of the balcony, when I just dropped to my knees, my skirt a sea of light sage green material around me. I hunched over and put my head in my hands.

I felt hot, salty tears cascading down my cheeks. I couldn't stop myself from crying. But crying wasn't making me feel any better, in fact, I was feeling worse than when I'd run out of the ballroom.

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**Stay Tuned for More! **

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	5. Tears in the Moonlight

**I don't own Pokemon. **

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A moment later, I was aware of someone beside me. I thought it was Paul at first, come to demand I get a hold of myself. I felt a hand on my shoulder, sending shivers down my spine, and I wiped my tears away from my eyes quickly as I looked around at my companion, who was kneeling beside me.

"Dawn, I'm here to say something that I should have said to you a long, long time ago. I'm sorry."

"Oh Ash!" I said, throwing my arms around his neck in a hug. "Why are you sorry? I'm not mad at you. It was all my fault."

"You're not?"

"No. I can't even remember the reason that we fought."

"Yeah? Me either."

"I'm sorry too. I – I – I shouldn't – have..." I trailed off, bursting into tears once again.

"Don't cry Dawn." Ash said quietly, pulling back and wiping a tear off of my cheek with his thumb.

"Ash, I've missed you so much." I sighed, my lower lip still trembling a little. My heart was racing, I wasn't sure if it was from running or not.

"I've missed you too." Ash replied as I pulled closer to him, hugging him again. After a moment, I pulled away, and Ash stood up, and then offered me a hand to help me to my feet.

"Thanks." I sniffed quietly as I took his hand and got to my feet.

"You know, you look really pretty tonight Dawn."

"Same old charming Ash Ketchum." I teased him, looking away to try and hide my face, which had gone bright red.

Ash stepped to the ledge of the balcony, and looked out at the world beyond the castle. I joined him a second later. I leaned on the balcony, as the breeze picked up, gently blowing in our faces. It tossed my curls a little bit, and I took a deep breath of the cool night air.

"Aren't the stars pretty?" I asked, looking up.

"Yeah." Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ash look up to the stars too.

"Maybe you should be getting back. Your date might be getting worried." I said at last, looking at Ash, trying not to sound disappointed that he might leave me alone on the balcony.

"I don't have a date." Ash replied, sounding a little awkward.

"That would explain why I didn't see you dancing with anyone." I blushed a little bit, still looking away.

"Yeah." I saw movement out of the corner of my eye as Ash looked away too.

"It's been pretty boring without you around."

"Back at ya. But Dawn, why did you stop Coordinating?"

"Do you remember when my last contest was? I was still traveling with you then. Afterwards, I was too upset for a long time and just thinking about doing contests again only made me upset."

"You were a great Coordinator."

"But Contests only made me think of you. You came to every single contest I was ever in, and I was just too upset to coordinate without you there anymore."

"That's the same reason I gave up trying to battle the elite 4. I disappointed Cynthia when I abandoned it. I kept training, but I haven't challenged a gym since we went our separate ways."

I turned again and threw my arms around Ash for a second time. I felt my cheeks burning as they turned bright red, but I didn't care. I knew that I had shocked Ash again. It took him a second to respond, and he hugged me back tightly.

We hugged for a long time, but after awhile, we turned back to lean on the balcony again. We stared together at the view, and at the stars for a long time in silence. It felt so good to be back, hanging out with Ash again.

"There you are. You made me look like a fool, Dawn. Are you coming back in now?" Paul's voice asked behind us, startling both Ash and I. We turned around together. At the sight of Ash, Paul's eyes narrowed.

"Look like a fool? How?" I asked, puzzled.

"Running out like that. What's wrong with you?!" Paul growled, taking a step forward and crossing his arms.

"It's your fault. You weren't giving me any air. Like most people, I need to breathe." I retorted.

"You know, normal girls don't complain." Paul snorted, taking another step towards Ash and I. I stepped closer to Ash.

"If you knew _anything_ about Dawn, you would know that Dawn is definately not a normal girl." Ash came to my rescue quickly and defensively.

"Come on Dawn. Ditch that loser Ash, the failure, and come with me." Paul ordered, his voice cold.

"Ash, loser and failure don't belong in the same sentence." I replied, my hand bumping Ash's hand, which was balled in a fist.

"You know what Dawn, you are a loser and a failure too. Congrats. Ash has rubbed off on you."

"Leave me alone, Paul. Stop being such a jerk."

"Why should I?"

"Because Dawn is with me now." Ash spoke up, glaring at Paul.

"Oh, I'm sure about that. You're just jealous like I knew you would be. Why else would I dance with Dawn? She's pathetic."

"You used me?!" I asked, my temper snapping like a brittle twig.

"I suppose if you must know. I knew that I could get to Ash through you. You're the only one left anyway." Paul confessed before turning on his heel and storming out, closing the doors behind him.

"Why would Paul want to get to me?"

"Because you're his only real competition for Champion." I said, my hand bumping Ash's again.

"You think so?"

"Yes, in fact, I'm very sure of it. Why don't we start to travel together again? I'll start participating in contests again, and you start challenging gym leaders. We'll be unstoppable."

"Deal. Why don't we go back to the ballroom? I suspect that we're being missed."

"Yeah. That's sounds like a good idea." I agreed, taking a step towards the door.

"Dawn, one last thing." Ash said, grabbing my hand. I felt myself get warm, and I knew that I was blushing. I turned around to face him, curiously wondering what he wanted to say, as he released my hand like it was a hot rock.

"Yes?" I prompted him when he did not respond for a long moment. His cheeks were pink in color, he was blushing too.

"Uh…Wo – Would you be my date for the rest of the evening?"

Now I knew that my cheeks were bright red. I was blushing so much, I was afraid that I'd say something stupid if I spoke, so I only nodded. Ash was blushing a lot too.

At last, I got my tongue back, and managed to speak. Of course, my mouth felt full of cotton. Well, at least, what I imagined a mouthful of cotton would feel like, since I've never actually put cotton inside my mouth. "I would love to be your date for the rest of the evening."

Ash put a hand on the door handle, but when he tried to pull, the door remained closed. Paul had locked us out! My blood boiled with anger. The boy had issues, especially with Ash. Why would he have a problem with Ash? That was what confused me most.

After almost half an hour of trying to open the door without success, we gave up trying. We sat on the balcony, and began to talk. As much as we were missing one of the most important events of one of our closest friend's lives, it felt good to catch up. It had been awhile since we'd been so sure of our friendship.

Eventually, we fell asleep, leaning against each other, watching the moon climbing higher and higher in the inky black night sky. We were woken up by a group of our friends at the end of the party. Apparently, we had been missed. And a lot at that. We didn't tell them that Paul had locked us out, just that we'd gone out to get some air and the door had locked behind us.

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**It's not over yet! Stay tuned and I'll have the next chapter up ASAP.**


	6. Training Time

Me:** I don't own Pokmon.**

Paul:** She says that _again. _How many times must she say that?**

Me:** Paul, shut up. Nobody asked for your input.**

Ash:** You tell him!**

Brock:** Well he should be allowed to speak freely, but that comment was not needed.**

May:** Yeah. How rude of him!**

Paul:** She made me look like a jerk!!!**

Misty:** Well maybe if you didn't act like a jerk all the time, she wouldn't have made you look like a jerk!**

Dawn:** Ok, everyone shut up.**

Ash:** Make me.**

Paul:** You aren't the boss of me, miss Bluenette.**

Dawn:** Seriously. Everyone shut up. Do you not want to hear the rest of the story?!**

Everyone except Me and Dawn:** OH! Right. Sorry.**

Me:** Oh! I have a story to tell, don't I? Well then, lets get on it it!**

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Sitting side by side on a couch in the Pokemon center, Dawn and Ash looked up at the television screen above them. It was an advertisement for a Pokemon contest that was coming up. After a moment, it finished, and a commercial for toothpaste flashed into it's place.

The two teens stood up, and made their way outside of the Pokemon center. They seemed distant from each other from some reason. Both seemed to now be in deep thought. Then, they reached a small clearing.

"Come on out everyone." They said in unison, both throwing multiple pokeballs into the air above them in one motion. In a flash and flurry of movement, and the rather large group of pokemon stood before them. Of course, two were not with the just released pokemon, as a Pikachu was perched on Ash's shoulder, and Piplup was holding onto Dawn's hat.

Buneary saw Pikachu, and clasped her paws together. The phrase "Absence makes the heart grow fonder" had proven very true with Buneary. She has refused to evolve, just as both Piplup and Pikachu had. Pikachu and Piplup jumped down, and ran off to join their friends. Their Pokemon were soon racing around the small clearing, playing and having fun with each other.

Ash studied the pokemon before them for a long moment, before turning to Dawn. She was clearly still very deep in thought. Ash only stared at her for a moment. He wondered what was on her mind that seemed to be worrying her so much.

"Dawn?"

Ash's concerned voice pulled the pretty blue haired girl from the depths of her own mind. She looked momentarily confused, but then she smiled, and glanced at the pokemon.

"No need to worry."

"What's on your mind?"

"Oh, I'm just thinking hard about the Grand Festival. It's so close, and I only need one more ribbon to qualify for it."

"You'll get that ribbon. I know you will."

"Thanks Ash, but I only have one chance to get it, and I'm just afraid I'll screw it up. I'm going to have to wait for such a long time if I don't win this next contest."

"You're a great coordinator. I know that you'll win it."

"Thanks Ash. You're such a great friend."

"No problem. So, who are you going to use for the contest?"

"I don't know. Everyone has great combinations."

"Why don't you show me some of them so that we can discuss them?"

Dawn nodded in response, and called all of her Pokemon back to her. Ash's Pokemon joined them along the sidelines. Dawn smiled at the Pokemon, and told them what they were doing. The Pokemon nodded enthusiastically and some of them cheered.

"Let's start off with Piplup."

The small blue penguin pokemon nodded at his trainer's voice, and leaped forward. He seemed determined. Both teens nodded with approval at Piplup's attitude.

"Piplup, use Bubblebeam!" Dawn called out softly to her Pokemon, who immediately obeyed, sending a stream of bubbles into the air above him.

Ash nodded in approval. He had seen Piplup use Bubblebeam many times before. It was nothing new, but he said nothing. He didn't want to harm Dawn's confidence, especially right before a very important contest. She needed to win, or she would have to wait for such a long time until the next Grand Festival.

But from then on, everything went haywire. Nothing was working out right. Piplup looked angry that the combination that his trainer had so carefully thought out had gone wrong. But Ash was not sure who Piplup was mad at, himself or Dawn. Dawn praised Piplup for his efforts anyway.

Next up was Pachirisu. Pachirisu and Dawn both looked crushed when the combination didn't make it past the second move either, but neither said anything. The rest of the performances didn't go well. By the end of it, Dawn was a nervous wreck.

To be totally honest, Dawn looked like she was holding back tears. She _was_ holding back tears, as best she could. She didn't want Ash to think she couldn't handle a flat tire in the never ending road trip that was life.

Ash stepped towards her. Dawn had her back towards him. Ash reached out and put a hand on her shoulder, trying to calm her. He squeezed her shoulder gently, thinking that she was calming down, but after a second, she pulled away from him and ran off by herself, leaving her Pokemon standing with Ash.

Ash's hand stayed raised for a moment, right where Dawn's shoulder had been a moment before, finally it dropped to his side. He wasn't sure what to do. His heart told him to go after her, but his head told him she needed space to be alone and think for a little while.

He was confused. So were all the Pokemon. All of the Pokemon, including those that belonged to Dawn, were looking towards Ash for guidance. Ash's eyes were filled with emotion, mostly confusion.

Then, Buneary turned and took a step in the direction that Dawn had gone. She seemed to be the most concerned about her trainer. Pikachu reached out and grabbed Buneary's paw. "Pika…." He said quietly. Buneary understood, and nodded. Dawn probably did need to be alone right now.

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Me: **I noticed today when I uploaded this, that I make Dawn like very... sensitive during this. **

Ash:** Dawn is tough.**

Me:** I know Ash.**

Dawn:** Hold on... Ash, were you just trying to flirt with me?**

Ash:** WHAT?! NO! *blushes* OF COURSE NOT! I DON'T LIKE YOU LIKE THAT!!!**

Dawn:** Oh yes you do.**

Ash:** Says who?!**

Me:** Says me. Haha! We win! *high fives Dawn***

Ash:** *pulls hat down to hide his face, which is red from blushing***

Me:** Don't worry, your secret's safe with me.**

Ash:** WHAT SECRET?! EVERYONE HEARD IT, SO IT'S NOT A SECRET ANYMORE!!!**

Dawn:** *looks at me* You are so awesome. You just got Ash to admit that he likes me.**

Ash:** ... I hate you so much right now.**


End file.
